Seth Petruzelli wasn’t the only big winner on the third edition of CBS EliteXC “Saturday Night Fights.” Affliction Entertainment scored in its first attempt at cross-promotion and emerged from one of the most fascinating nights in the history of MMA having raised the profile of its brand.

In the near term, Petruzelli’s eleventh-hour decision to scrap his fight with Aaron Rosa and stomp Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson in less time than it takes to order a pint at the pub will be all the buzz. However, from a business perspective, Affliction was the clear winner Saturday night.

It took Andrei Arlovski a round to get his motor running, but the former UFC heavyweight champion clobbered Roy Nelson inside the distance. That solid KO performance, coupled with Slice’s meltdown, meant Affliction ended the night with the best heavyweight on the card.

Outside the cage, Affliction’s presence in the CBS broadcast was significant. The promotion ran eight spots, a half-dozen of which pushed Fedor Emelianenko as the best fighter in MMA. The two other spots focused on Arlovski, in anticipation of a match-up between the two early next year. The Affliction logo also was featured in on-screen graphics during the broadcast, including a sponsorship of the main-event tale of the tape.

The only negative for Affliction was the reference by cage announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr., saying Arlovski was making his EliteXC debut.

With Affliction paying the freight for both Arlovski and Nelson, along with its ad buy in the broadcast, the promotion likely spent well more than $1 million, but it was a worthwhile investment. Live network television exposure for MMA remains limited. Affliction capitalized on the rare opportunity by showcasing one of its marquee fighters and pumping its heavyweight champion, who’s still a relative unknown to mainstream fans.

While Affliction made the most of SNF 3, EliteXC is left picking up the pieces.

Slice was going to lose at some point, but for him to go down to a light heavyweight UFC castoff in spectacular fashion is the MMA equivalent of a train wreck. Hardcore MMA fans have been unyielding in their criticism of Slice from get-go, and his performance — or, more appropriately lack of — Saturday night lends credence to their disapproval.

The outcome could not have been worse for EliteXC. Had Petruzelli used his martial-arts pedigree to school Slice on the ground to manufacture a submission or decision victory, EliteXC could have spun the loss as essentially a learning experience for its fighter, who had the cojones to take the fight. After all, Slice trained for a completely different opponent and wasn’t ready for the jiu-jitsu or Muay Thai that Petruzelli threw at him. Instead, Petruzelli needed just 14 seconds to land a short right hand and overwhelm Slice at his own game.

Slice’s days as an MMA curiosity are over. He will still be able to sell some tickets, but the loss to Petruzelli, who’s never been confused with a truly elite-level fighter, effectively makes Slice just another guy who fights for a living.

The evening’s other big loser was Ken Shamrock.

A cut, requiring six stitches, sustained while warming up for the fight? Are you kidding me? Virtually the only thing the 44-year-old Shamrock had going for him heading into the bout was experience, and then he knocks himself out of the fight with an amateurism move. Amazing. It’s time for Shamrock, the fighter, to say goodbye.

While there are still some who might be interested in seeing Slice and Shamrock fight, and there’s probably a business case to make the bout, what purpose does it serve? Now that Slice has lost, could you even call a Shamrock victory an upset? And, the upside of the fight has never been there for Slice. He should destroy Shamrock. Hasn’t everyone else in the past eight years?

Let’s move on.

With Slice’s flameout, Gina Carano was the biggest single star of the night. She still can’t conquer the scale, but she sure can fight. Kelly Kobald was a game opponent, but it was evident early on that she just didn’t have the zing in her shots to hurt Carano. Kobald knew it and segued to working for the takedowns the rest of the fight. Carano thwarted that strategy and posted her seventh consecutive victory.

Cristiane Santos beat Yoko Takahashi in spectacular fashion on the preliminary card, setting up what has the makings of the biggest fight in the history of women’s MMA. However, the key question now is, how does the bout fit into EliteXC’s future?

Going into Saturday night, the plan was to stage that bout, along with Slice in the headliner, as part of a pay-per-view show in the first quarter of next year. Slice needs to win again before EliteXC can even contemplate asking fans to pay to see him. And, as entertaining as the fight might be, Carano vs. Santos can’t anchor a PPV show.

While SNF 3 produced great theatre – and a strong overnight rating – for EliteXC, it raised even more questions about its future, which was tenuous at best heading into the night.

Steve Sievert is the lead staff writer and business columnist for MMAjunkie.com. He is also the former MMA beat writer and lead blogger for the Houston Chronicle.